Granja La Esperanza Potosi X.O Natural

The coffee we have chosen for our December subscription is an experimental microlot, Potosi Natural X.O, from Granja La Esperanza. Luis and Rigoberto Herrera and their passionate team have produced some of the most incredible coffees, represented by many baristas around the world in coffee competitions. Read on to find out what make this coffee so unique.

About the Farm

Potosí was the family’s first farm, established in 1930 when Israel Correa and Carmen Rosa Vega, the Herrera’s grandmother, emigrated from the department of Antioquia. The large family of 14 children did much of the farm work themselves, but two brothers took particular interest in coffee production, and in the late 1990’s, Rigoberto and Luis took over the family business and started the push towards what Granja is now. 

About the Variety

The variety "San Juan" is a natural mutation of the hybrid of Mundo Novo, red bourbon and maragogype and it flourishes in the rich volcanic soil at Finca Potosi.

About the Processing

Natural processing around the region of Finca Potosi is a huge challenge due to the high humidity and frequent rain. To overcome these challenges, they’ve undertaken a unique fermentation and drying process for the selection, dubbed “XO” in honor of the cognac notes that result in the cup – “XO” means “extra old” and is used to designate some of the highest quality, longest aged cognacs. 

After a manual and rigorous picking process, the cherries are fermented in a controlled temperature tank between 48 and 50 hours. After fermentation, the coffee is left hours in the silo and then is moved to solar drying for 28 days. Coffee is left in storage for 3 months to help stabilize it and reduce the astringency of freshness.

The End Result

We enjoy the delicate balance between terroir and process driven flavours, with a beautiful layered complexity. The coffee showcase a champagne grape and tropical fruits acidity with a lingering black forest finish. 

Subscribe here now for more exciting coffees lined up on our Monthly subscription programme.